The APAHM Project Days 27-30: Running Point
- Lauren
- 6 hours ago
- 7 min read
Series: Running Point
Created By: Mindy Kaling, Elaine Ko, Ike Barinholtz
Release: 2025
Where to Watch: Netflix
Why It Made The List:
You all know Mindy Kaling from her hit shows (plural!) "The Mindy Project," "Never Have I Ever," "The Sex Life of College Girls," and, of course, "The Office." And you may recognize Elaine Ko from "Modern Family" and "Only Murders In The Building," and Ike Barinholtz from "The Mindy Project" and "The Studio." But when you put these three together, you get "Running Point" a sport comedy starring Kate Hudson and Brenda Song. Similar to "Ted Lasso," this show has very little to do with the actual sport itself, but focuses on an underdog and unassuming new leader in the game. Quickly renewed for a second season (which came out this past April), "Running Point" spent 6 weeks in Netflix's Top 10, reaching #1 in 33 countries.
My Thoughts:
"Running point" is defined as a "critical metric or a pivotal moment in a game when a team's performance can either significantly enhance or detract from their overall success" (source). Isla Gordon (Kate Hudson) becomes the new President of the Los Angeles Waves basketball team after her brother Cam, and current president, goes to rehab. A family business, Isla's other two brothers, Sandy and Ness also work with the Waves along with her bestie Ali Lee (Brenda Song) acting as Chief of Staff. Everyone, except Ali and Cam, think Isla is the worst possible choice for President. But Isla becoming President is the running point -- the moment where the Waves can go all the way or fizzle out.
Isla has loved basketball her entire life. But no one, including her father, ever took her seriously. She settled on being the charity arm of the Waves to stay close to the game, but she has always wanted to be more involved. Cam chooses Isla over his other brothers because he knows Isla knows more about basketball and is decisive. Once Ali hears the news, she bluntly tells Isla that women in power have to be perfect right from the start and never mess up because it makes women everywhere look bad and could possibly ruin other women's potential success. No pressure.
Well, of course, Isla has a rough start. The players do not take her seriously due to her party girl past. Her brothers stage a coup to remove Isla from presidency, deeming her incapable (Sandy goes as far to say that Isla doesn't need to understand the contract, but just needs to sign it). The sports commentators criticize her. A rumor is going around that she hooked up with her player. And there's a mystery leak who is spilling Isla's spitball ideas about the team. To top it all off, the Gordon's have a surprise baby brother, Jackie, who works at the Waves arena in concessions.
Isla proves very quickly that the "knows her sh*t" and starts making bold moves across the team. Isla proves that women know and like sports (1/3 of Waves viewers are women) and even makes a deal with Sephora's head of marketing to be the new sponsor for the Waves. "Running Point" includes more of these moments, like when the rookie cannot make his free throws and they fly in the coach of the team who has the highest free throw average in the world: a women's Indian team. Ali states that she worked her way to the top from being an assistant.
And although the Gordon family, with the exception of Jackie, is a white family, the show does not make Jackie or Ali feel like token ethnic characters. Nor do they attempt to have either of these characters, or Sandy, represent ALL of their groups. I know of a show in which one LGBTQ+ Latina female writer had to be the voice for the gay character, the POC character, and the women characters on her show because she was the only one in the writer's room who represented those groups. She was a great writer, but something like that can be stale. Shoehorning tropes and stereotypes and arcs for entire groups into one character is such a classic example of diversity versus representation.
Jackie's mother was a Hispanic maid at the Gordon vacation home. When Jackie starts attracting women because of his new famous familial ties, he accidentally spreads an STD. One of his hookups was Waves chairman of the board's daughter. Before knowing about the STD, Stephen Ramirez runs into Jackie in the restroom. Jackie expresses admiration and stated that it meant so much to see Ramirez's name on a hospital because he and his mother knew they would be taken care of. This was such a sweet moment to show how much representation matters. After Ramirez finds out about his daughter and demands Isla to fire Jackie, Jackie attempts to apologize. Ramirez tells him the hard truth -- his half-siblings can afford to mess up. And not because they are rich, but because people of color are held to a different standard. One false move, just as Ali said about women in power, can cause people to see your entire group the way they see you. As an Asian American women in a city that is 60%+ Black, I am aware that I might be the only Asian person some people know on a friendly basis. And yes, it does cross my mind that how I carry myself can affect how people view other Asians. I tip well, I say please and thank you and yes ma'am, I hold doors open, I ensure I am a model citizen. Because I am fully aware of the stereotypes that surround Asians. And I unconsciously try to prove we're "not all like that" as a survival tactic. People of color already have the odds stacked against them (what's the opposite of white privilege?), that we really can't afford to mess up. We can't give people any more reason to not like us.
Additionally, Ness is married to Bituin, Filipino woman. Someone in the show (I can't remember who) accuses Bituin of being a mail ordered bride, to which Isla quickly shuts this down. The idea that people must be in interracial relationships because of fetishes, green cards, or money is such a disgusting assumption to make. Ness had spent time in Asia and truly loves his wife. I also loved that Ness mentioned eating balut, a Filipino street food, because I feel like we don't have as much Filipino representation in Western media.
Lastly, we have Ali. Ali is a force to be reckoned with and kicks a** and takes names. She is a fierce and loyal friend to Isla. Portrayed by the millennial Asian queen, Brenda Song, Ali can be added to the long list of iconic characters on Song's resume. Ali is Thai American and married to a Korean man. She is throwing her son a Doljanchi, a Korean party for one year olds to decide their career, but doesn't fully understand all the ins and outs of the ceremony. Although Ali is quick to remind Isla that Asians do things differently so her advice may not always hit home, it never feels that the writer's emphasize Ali's Asian-ness to the point where it becomes her entire bit. In an interview, Song reveals she has imposter syndrome, although she has a successful 20+ year career. I think Asians especially have a hard time being humble and taking up space. Song claims we deserve to be here (in this case, cast as Ali) and not to under estimate ourselves. We are our own worst enemies who hold ourselves back. Song also has the opportunity to speak Hmong on screen. Her mother is Thai but was adopted by a Hmong family, and so Song is fluent in the language. It was such a great way for the writers to include a small piece of representation. Song says "I love that it doesn't need to be addressed. That it rounds out a character when you see who they really are. That's one of the things I love about 'Running Point' and that being able to...I'm married to a Korean husband, just because I'm Asian doesn't mean I understand what a doljanchi is. I think like little things like that, you can't have that without having a creator or someone from the top really understanding how important it is to be able to really find authenticity in the small moments without really having to draw attention to it." This reminds me so much of Jenny Han stating that there is no point to Lara Jean being Asian. She just is. As Song says, it is so important to have people at the top who are advocating and working to change how underrepresented groups are seen on screen.
In Conclusion:
When I first watched "Running Point" during its premiere, I couldn't help but draw parallels to "Ted Lasso," saying it's the same but with basketball. But watching the show through the lens of The APAHM Project, I can see the very obvious difference. Ted was a fumbling, white man from the Midwest. He was purposely hired to sabotage a team because of his lack of knowledge. Isla, possibly the smartest Gordon and the most capable at being President, is underestimated because she's a woman. Too emotional to be the boss, too beautiful to be respected. I always tell my parents that I have to work 6 times harder than my male counterparts: I am Asian, I am a woman, I am young. There are three ceilings I have to fight my way through to be taken seriously and to prove I am capable. Isla also has to break the glass ceiling. Her father and brothers never took her seriously even though she loved and understood basketball better than any of them. Marcus Winfield, the star player, tells Isla her brother and father saw the players as horses. Because Isla respected her players and staff enough to be brutally honest and show tough love, she gained their respect. It is Isla's wits, intelligence, and empathy that made her a better President and leader than her brother or father. She proved that whether you are a woman or a POC or LGBTQ+ etc, that people can respect you as an individual. Because at the end of the day, no one group is better than the other. We're all just people who are more than their stereotype.
Shout Out!
Today's shout out goes to The Lonely Sweets! Owned and operated by Loan, The Lonely Sweets makes (BEAUTIFUL) custom cakes and desserts (the ube banana pudding is delicious!) as well as offers cake decorating classes! Loan's work has been featured in Rough Draft Atlanta's "Meet Your Baker" series. Check her out on her Instagram and catch her at an Atlanta pop up!
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